In many parts of the world, we’ve just endured an extra snowy winter followed by a cool, delayed spring. But wait for it. When hotter weather arrives it will take no time at all for media outlets to start ‘educating’ us about heat waves and dangerous climate change.
In anticipation of those ‘news’ stories, here’s an inoculation: Cold weather kills far more people than does hot weather. If we truly care about weather-related suffering and sorrow, heat waves should be near the bottom of our priority list.
On his Facebook page, Bjorn Lomborg is calling our attention to a research paper published last year in Environment International. It contains marvelous news. In 7 out of 10 countries studied, heat-related deaths have decreased since 1985.
The researchers conclude that improved health care and infrastructure (aka increased access to air conditioning), have made us less likely to die from the heat. Normal, everyday upgrades are outpacing heat-related risks. As living standards improve, higher temperatures become less life-threatening.
But the news isn’t so rosy on the other side of the ledger, where most deaths connected to extreme temperatures actually occur.
Depending on the country and the time frame under discussion, the ratio of cold deaths to heat deaths varies. Since Table 3 of this study includes data for all 10 countries for the years 2000-2004, the numbers below are pulled from that column.
During this five-year period, no deaths in Ireland were linked to heat, but 9.34% of all deaths were attributed to cold temperatures. (Compared to the 1980s, cold-related deaths in Ireland have fallen dramatically.)
The big picture is that for every person who dies during a heat wave, many more quietly perish from the cold at other times of the year.
Here’s the ratio of cold deaths to heat deaths in the locales examined by this study:
Australia: 11:1
Brazil: 6:1
Canada: 13:1
Ireland: cold caused 9.34% of all deaths, heat caused 0%
Japan: 27:1
South Korea: 37:1
Spain: 4:1
Switzerland: 1.5: 1
UK: 28:1
USA: 25:1
When the next heat wave hits, don’t expect journalists and weather broadcasters to provide you with all the relevant facts.
In their zeal to hype global warming, they will systematically misinform you. They will encourage you to believe things about weather-related deaths that are the opposite of the truth.
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The standard mode of operation for the climate change movement is to take something that is normal or has occurred before, and declare it as a disaster. They then go one how drastic action is needed. Heat isn’t that hard to deal with. I remember being assigned to Huntsville when they needed additional engineering help in July. I worked in air conditioning, drove an air conditioned car, and stay in an air conditioned motel. For those with less available there are solutions. Remove clothing or even more effective wear wet clothing. The hottest weather in US history was in the mid 1930’s and they slept outside with wet blankets.
Proof positive of Global Warming is that hockey stick-like increase in temperature from January to June. Everyone can see it. Never happened before. The environmental elitists need to take over now to save us from the apocalypse.
Summer is just around the corner and of course it always is hot during the summer as its always cold in the winter and all heat waves will be blamed on Climate Change Trump and Trump voters because Eco-Wackos idiots are all mouth and no mind
When President Trump had been in office for just 3 months there was some weather event that the press and politicians from other countries blamed on him. Even if everything the extremists claimed was true about the climate change, there is no way Trump could have caused anything in just 3 months. That shows just how solid their logic is.